No Criminal Charges Filed Against Aroldis Chapman
Rafael Olmeda of the Miami Sun Sentinel reports that Broward County prosecutors will not file criminal charges against left-hander Aroldis Chapman in connection with allegations of domestic violence dating back to this past October. Olmeda adds that the Broward State’s Attorney office will be making an official statement on the matter later today.
Chapman’s lawyer, Paul Molle, issued the following statement, according to Olmeda: “We are all pleased that the Davie Police Department and the Office of the State Attorney took the time to fully investigate the matter and have concluded that charges were not warranted.”
As Olmeda reminds, no arrests were made at the time of the purported incident, with police officials citing inconsistencies in witness accounts. Chapman’s girlfriend, Cristina Barnea, told police that Chapman struck her in front of others at a birthday party and also choked her. The initial reports of the incident also alleged that Chapman discharged a handgun eight times in his garage. However, Olmeda writes that Barnea later told police she only heard one gunshot, was not certain who fired the shot and did not wish to prosecute Chapman. He continues, noting that Barnea told prosecutors that she did not remember saying that Chapman had hit her, and other witnesses said they saw no physical altercation between the pair.
Whether or not Chapman will face some form of suspension under Major League Basbeall’s newly implemented domestic violence policy remains to be seen. That decision will be left up to commissioner Rob Manfred’s discretion. The widespread expectation has been that Chapman will face some form of repercussion — likely in the form of a suspension — although the fact that no arrest was made and no charges have been filed seems likely to work in his favor to some extent.
Earlier this offseason, the Dodgers backed out of a trade to acquire Chapman, reportedly in large part due to the emergence of these allegations. The Yankees acquired Chapman from the Reds several weeks later for a package of infielder Eric Jagielo, right-hander Rookie Davis, right-hander Caleb Cotham and infielder Tony Renda.
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Tigers Sign Justin Upton
JAN 20: Detroit has announced the signing.
JAN. 18: While many expected the Tigers to be finished with their offseason spending, owner Mike Ilitch reminded naysayers on Monday evening to never count the Tigers out of the free-agent market, as Detroit reportedly agreed to a six-year, $132.75MM with free-agent outfielder Justin Upton. The 28-year-old Reynolds Sports Management client will reportedly receive an opt-out clause after the second year of the deal, which is said to pay him an evenly distributed $22.125MM per year. Upton also reportedly secured a partial (twenty-team) no-trade clause in the deal, which does not contain any deferred money, unlike some of the other major deals signed this offseason and in recent years.
Upton will join what was an already imposing middle-of-the-order grouping in Detroit, adding another right-handed bat to join the likes of Miguel Cabrera, J.D. Martinez, Ian Kinsler and the switch-hitting Victor Martinez. That quintet should give opposing left-handed pitcher fits, though each is plenty formidable against right-handed pitching as well. Across the past three years, which he’s split between the Braves and Padres, Upton has batted .262/.344/.470 and averaged 27 home runs per season. While he’s not a standout defensive player in the outfield, he’s a solid enough defender in left field, where Ultimate Zone Rating pegged him at +2 runs and Defensive Runs Saved valued him at +8 in 2015. His addition should lead to either a Cameron Maybin/Anthony Gose platoon in center field or an outfield alignment of Upton-Maybin-Martinez (J.D., that is), with Gose serving as a fourth outfielder. His signing and the presence of Martinez on the other corner have effectively blocked prospects Tyler Collins and Steven Moya for the foreseeable future.
By signing Upton, the Tigers will surrender their second draft pick of the offseason. Detroit’s No. 9 overall selection is protected under the collective bargaining agreement, but the team already parted with its second-round pick to add right-hander Jordan Zimmermann to the rotation, so they’ll forfeit their third-round pick — currently projected to be the 85th in the draft, per Baseball America — to sign Upton. The Padres, who extended a qualifying offer to Upton that was ultimately rejected, will receive a compensatory pick between at the end of the first round of the 2016 draft.
Of course, the addition of Upton is not without long-term payroll ramifications. While there’s every possibility that Upton will opt out of the contract in two years’ time (assuming that he is healthy and productive from 2016-17), there’s also the risk that his production declines or injuries lead to him opting into the remaining four years. Considering the fact that the Tigers owe Cabrera $218MM through 2023, Verlander $112MM through 2019, Zimmermann $110MM through 2020 and Victor Martinez $54MM through 2018, Upton’s contract adds another risk-laden deal to the ledger in the name of present-day winning. Those payroll concerns are likely a large part of the reason that GM Al Avila said earlier this offseason that further outfield additions (and, in fact, significant additions in general) were largely unlikely. However, owner Mike Ilitch has long been one of baseball’s freest spenders, and he candidly told the media following Zimmermann’s press conference that he “doesn’t care” about spending money. It’s quite possible — especially considering the potential luxury tax ramifications it carries — that this contract is more of an ownership decision than one from the club’s top baseball operations decision-makers.
By my crude calculations, the Upton signing will push the Tigers to just shy of $176MM worth of luxury-tax considerations in terms of only the team’s guaranteed contracts. With arbitration-eligible players not even factored into that equation, it seems quite likely that Detroit will incur penalties, which, as FOX’s Ken Rosenthal notes (on Twitter), would mean a 17.5 percent tax on every dollar over $189MM as a first-time offender of the luxury tax penalty.
Risk aside, the Tigers’ lineup is now among baseball’s most formidable collections of hitters, though it’s admittedly a right-leaning bunch. Upton is a lifetime .271/.352/.473 hitter, and while he has yet to develop into the consistent superstar-level performer that many forecast in his prospect days, he’s a consistent three- to four-win player, depending on one’s preferred version of WAR, and arguably has some upside remaining in the tank. Upton, after all, posted an enormous .289/.369/.529 batting line with 31 home runs back in 2011, and while that season did come in Arizona’s hitter-friendly Chase Field, he’s still young enough that it’s not out of the question for him to replicate that level of production. Even if his offense is more commensurate with his career batting line or his post-2011 production, however, Upton’s age makes him a likely candidate to maintain his status as a well-above-average bat in his new environs.
The Upton contract figures to be the final significant piece for the Tigers this offseason. Added to the signings of Zimmermann (five years, $110MM), Mike Pelfrey (two years, $16MM), Mark Lowe (two years, $11MM), Mike Aviles (one year, $2MM) and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (one year, $507.5K), that makes a total of $270.26MM spent on free agents alone, to say nothing of the guaranteed payroll added in trades to acquire Francisco Rodriguez ($9.5MM), Justin Wilson ($1.525MM) and Maybin ($5.5MM). All told, the Tigers have spent a staggering $288.78MM on upgrades to their roster this season.
As for Upton, he’ll receive a sizable guaranteed payday which, while coming up a bit short of the $147MM projected by MLBTR at the onset of free agency, also includes a highly valuable opt-out clause that allows him to re-enter the open market heading into his age-30 campaign. At that point, Upton could be in line for a similar or even greater amount to the guarantee he just received — particularly if either the market or his bat takes a notable step forward — while having already banked $44.25MM in his two years with the Tigers. In examining the rash of opt-out clauses that have been given out this winter — Upton joins Jason Heyward, David Price, Johnny Cueto, Scott Kazmir, Wei-Yin Chen and Ian Kennedy as players to receive an opt-out provision — MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz estimated that such clauses could carry a theoretical monetary value as high as $20MM. Suffice it to say, suggestions that Upton may ultimately need to settle for a one-year deal (or any form of short-term pact) proved to be something of an overreaction to his quiet market. The sizable deal serves as a reminder that free agents of this caliber will nearly always get paid, even if their market isn’t apparent (a concept Jeff Todd an I discussed on last week’s MLBTR Podcast, in which we noted Detroit as a possible landing spot for a high-priced outfielder). While the temptation to say that this signing further shrinks the market for Yoenis Cespedes certainly exists, I’d counter by saying that Upton’s deal should suggest that eventually, Cespedes will get the long-term deal he seeks, even if his ultimate landing spot doesn’t currently appear to be an ideal fit.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported talks between the two sides. Jon Heyman reported that the two sides were nearing a deal and that Upton would be getting a long-term deal (links to Twitter). USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported the agreement, pending a physical. Rosenthal was the first to tweet the six-year term, and Nightengale broke news of the $132.75MM guarantee (via Twitter). Rosenthal reported the opt-out clause (via Twitter), and SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo was first to mention the no-trade clause (Twitter link). Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reported the evenly distributed breakdown of the deal (Twitter link). Nightengale reported that there were no deferrals (Twitter link). Heyman reported that Upton’s partial no-trade clause allows him to block trades to 20 teams (Twitter link).
Padres To Sign Fernando Rodney
The Padres have agreed to a major league contract with right-handed reliever Fernando Rodney, Jon Heyman reports on Twitter. Rodney and the Friars had been said to be nearing agreement in recent days.
The deal includes a $2MM guarantee for the Octagon Sports client, according to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter links). He’ll receive a $1.6MM base salary, with a floating-value club option that comes with a $400K buyout.
The deal includes a complicated set of provisions for incentives and the option year, according to Lin (Twitter links). Rodney can earn $5MM annually in incentives. And the 2017 option price tag will be $2MM plus whatever incentive value Rodney reaches in 2016. For instance, if Rodney were to hit all incentives in the coming season, the option value would be $7MM (and his maximum earnings for 2017 would be $12MM, because that year’s incentives could still be reached as well).
Rodney, who’ll join San Diego for his age-39 campaign, seems in line for a chance at taking the save opportunities for the club. After dealing away quality arms in Craig Kimbrel and Joaquin Benoit, and watching Shawn Kelley depart via free agency, there’s a ton of uncertainty in the Padres’ pen.
The talented-but-unpredictable Rodney probably isn’t best characterized as a stabilizing presence, but he’ll certainly infuse some punch into the late-inning mix. If nothing else, he’s still delivering a blazing mid-90s fastball despite his age.
It’s hard to know what to expect out of the man with the big right arm and the tilted brim. He had one of the most dominating seasons in recent memory back in 2012; followed that up with two more strong overall campaigns (though he occasionally left fans on edge with his escape feats); and then imploded early last year in Seattle.
Certainly, 2015 presents two possible versions of Rodney at this stage of his career. With the Mariners, he put up 50 2/3 frames of 5.68 ERA pitching. A declining swinging strike rate (just 9.6% last year) left him with a relatively meager 7.6 K/9 to go with 4.4 BB/9 for the M’s. But he turned it on after joining the Cubs late in the year. In twelve innings, he allowed just one earned run while striking out 15 batters and issuing only four free passes. And it bears noting, too, that Rodney still generates groundballs on about half of the balls put in play against him.
MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez first reported on the option and incentives (Twitter links).
Jonathan Lucroy Discusses Trade Possibility
Jonathan Lucroy has seen his name bandied about in trade rumors for quite some time, dating back to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. Today, the Brewers’ catcher candidly and openly discussed the possibility of a trade with Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, and while he stopped short of asking new GM David Stearns to trade him Lucroy implied that a trade might be best for both him and the rebuilding Brewers. Via Haudricourt, Lucroy offered the following statement:
“I’m not going to sit here and say we’re going to compete for the playoffs this year. If I did that, you’d call me a liar. I’d lose credibility and respect. I want to win and I don’t see us winning in the foreseeable future. I want to go to a World Series. That’s what all players want. Rebuilding is not a lot of fun for any veteran guy. … It’s not guaranteed that I’m going to win if I am traded. But I’m going to be a 30-year-old catcher (in June). I can’t put numbers on how much longer I’m going to play, but as players we want to win. I don’t care about the money; I just want to win. That’s the bottom line.”
One thing made clear by Lucroy after those comments is that he is not asking for a trade, nor is he expecting to be traded. In fact, Lucroy told Haudricourt that he’s planning on heading to camp with the Brewers and will be playing this season “with a chip on [his] shoulder” as he looks to prove naysayers wrong in the wake of a down season in 2015. Last year, Lucroy was limited to 103 games by a fractured big toe and a concussion that came with lasting effects and forced him to finish the year at first base. “I want to go out and tear it up. It wasn’t for a lack of effort last year,” said Lucroy. “I just did not compete at the level I know I’m capable of. There’s always doubters out there, which is fine. I plan on proving a lot of people wrong.”
Of course, those injuries — specifically the late concussion — make Lucroy a difficult trade chip for teams to assess. On the one hand, Lucroy batted .297/.359/.472 and averaged 18 homers per 162 games from 2012-14 as Milwaukee’s primary catcher. He’s also signed to a highly affordable deal that will pay him $4MM in 2016 plus a $5.25MM club option for the 2017 campaign. Those components of the Lucroy equation paint the picture of a player teeming with trade value — one of baseball’s most coveted assets. However, the other side of the coin is a bit murkier; Lucroy batted .264/.326/.391 with seven home runs this past season — solid production for a catcher, but nowhere near the levels he displayed in the three years prior. On top of that, Lucroy caught his final game of the season on Sept. 8 due to the aforementioned concussion, with the remainder of his time coming as either a pinch-hitter or first baseman.
That creates somewhat of a difficult situation when looking to trade Lucroy. Stearns has reportedly been seeking an enormous return to part with Lucroy, and the 29-year-old’s outstanding track record and contract make that a justifiable request. However, teams are probably wary of the potential for lingering concussion effects, causing reluctance to surrender significant talent to part with Lucroy. By hanging onto Lucroy, Stearns runs the risk of continued diminished production, which would only drop his value further. But, trading Lucroy now would be selling low if Lucroy is indeed able to bounce back to his previous heights.
Haudricourt notes that the Brewers also value Lucroy’s leadership and his ability to be a voice of calm and reason on a rebuilding club that will likely go through some painful stretches in the upcoming season. Lucroy insists that his clubhouse demeanor won’t be any different if he remains with the team, saying he won’t “dog it” or be a bad teammate/clubhouse presence in 2016 if he’s not moved.
A number of teams have been linked to Lucroy over the course of the offseason, with the Rangers perhaps representing the most commonly cited team with interest. James Wagner of the Washington Post recently wrote that the Nationals like Lucroy quite a bit as well, and Washington is said to have explored the trade market for upgrades at the catcher position.
I’ll add that readers are encouraged to check out Haudricourt’s interview in its entirety, as the column contains far more quotes from Lucroy than are transcribed here in addition to plenty of insight from Milwaukee’s seasoned beat writer.
Dodgers To Sign Joe Blanton
The Dodgers have struck a one-year deal with righty Joe Blanton, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports on Twitter. He’ll earn a guaranteed $4MM in the agreement, per the report.
Blanton’s new deal includes some incentives as well, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds on Twitter. He stands to earn $250K bonuses at the fifty and sixty-inning threshold, and another $500K if he can make it to seventy.
The 35-year-old Blanton had long been a durable, back-of-the-rotation starter. But his career was at risk of stalling out after a string of rough seasons; indeed, it seemed at one point he might be retiring and he never pitched in the majors in 2014.
2015 proved a revelation for the veteran hurler, though, as he put up a sparkling campaign while working primarily from the pen for the first time in his career. He was good for the Royals and even better after being acquired off of the waiver wire by the Pirates. All told, Blanton spun 76 frames of 2.84 ERA pitching with 9.4 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 to go with a 48.6% groundball rate.
Los Angeles intends to utilize Blanton in the pen, of course, with Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times suggesting (Twitter link) that he may function as a long man. As Hernandez notes, it makes particular sense to have an effective, multi-inning righty given the large number of southpaws in the Dodgers’ rotation.
Marlins Sign Wei-Yin Chen
The Marlins have officially agreed to a deal with free agent lefty Wei-Yin Chen. He’ll reportedly receive a five-year, $80MM guarantee — just as MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes predicted before the offseason — but the deal negotiated between the Miami front office and the Boras Corporation is much more complicated than that.
First and foremost, while Chen won’t gain no-trade protection, the contract comes with an opt-out opportunity for the 30-year-old Chen after 2017. And he’ll receive just $28MM of the guaranteed money in the first two years of the deal ($8MM signing bonus, $6MM salary in 2016, and $14MM for 2017). That would mean the team could get two prime years of the southpaw at a very appealing rate if he opts out, though the backside of the deal could turn ugly if Chen falters. (It’s worth noting, too, that the club could pick up a draft pick via a qualifying offer in an opt-out scenario.)
In the event that Chen remains in Miami, he could pick up a vesting/player option for a sixth season by logging 180 innings in the prior campaign or 360 frames over the two preceding years. That’s a somewhat unusual provision. Presumably, Chen would gain the right to choose between a one-year guarantee or free agency if he hits the innings tally. That option could bring the deal’s total value to $96MM.
As Dierkes explained at length in the above-linked post, Chen earned that contract by posting a 3.44 ERA over 377 innings in the last two seasons. He rarely issues free passes, dominates lefties, and brings a strong low-to-mid-nineties fastball. It’s important to note, too, that Chen has missed only minimal time and has not had any reported arm issues.
Of course, there’s more to it than that, and there are some indications that the lefty may have benefited from some good fortune (including playing in front of a stellar defensive unit in Baltimore). He’s only carried a 3.91 SIERA since the start of 2014, isn’t a major strikeout or groundball pitcher, and has been susceptible to the long ball. And Chen hasn’t exactly chewed up innings; despite being ready almost every fifth day, he doesn’t tend to go deep into games.
With the move, Miami has significantly upgraded a rotation that long seemed in need of a quality arm. The team lost Henderson Alvarez to free agency after non-tendering him, and that left the club with some uncertainty behind ace Jose Fernandez. Chen will join Jarred Cosart and Tom Koehler as near-locks for the staff, with Edwin Jackson now joining in-house options such as Adam Conley, Brad Hand, David Phelps, Justin Nicolino, Jose Urena, and Kendry Flores. (Some of those names, of course, could well end up in the pen.)
As Chen turned down a qualifying offer at the start of the offseason, he’ll cost the Marlins their top non-protected pick, which will come in the second round. The club’s first selection, at seventh overall, is protected. The Orioles, meanwhile, will stand to pick up a compensation pick for losing Chen.
It’s easy to forget that the Marlins were viewed by many as a legitimate contender heading into the 2015 season. A lot has changed since then, certainly, but the team’s young core still features a lot of talent. And while Chen himself has faced his share of questions, there’s no denying that he upgrades the Miami staff.
Jon Heyman reported a deal was close on Twitter. Buster Olney of ESPN.com tweeted that a deal was in place. Miami’s ongoing negotiations were reported on Twitter by Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported the guaranteed money on Twitter. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter links), Heyman (links to Twitter), and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (links to Twitter) had other key contract provisions.
Royals Sign Lorenzo Cain To Two-Year Deal
The Royals announced on Monday that they have reached a two-year contract with All-Star center fielder Lorenzo Cain that will buy out his final two seasons of arbitration eligibility for a $17.5MM guarantee. Cain, a client of All Bases Covered Sports Management, will is set to earn $6.5MM for the coming season and $11MM in 2017, per reports.
Cain had projected to earn $6.1MM. On Friday, he filed at $7.85MM with the team countering at $5MM, per Jon Heyman (via Twitter). The resulting $6.42MM midpoint would represent nearly a $4MM raise over Cain’s 2.725MM salary last year.
As Yahoo’s Jeff Passan noted on Twitter, the potential for another significant arbitration raise — perhaps by referencing free agent comparables after another big season — might explain why Kansas City was willing to lock in at such a high rate. Certainly, we’ve seen this deal format before; the Nationals, for instance, bought out the last two years of both Ian Desmond and Jordan Zimmermann prior to the 2014 season.
Cain put up a stellar campaign last year, his age-29 season, to follow up on and exceed a solid 2014 effort. Put together, he’s racked up a .304/.351/.447 slash line with 21 home runs and 56 stolen bases over 1,106 plate appearances dating back to 2014, and his outstanding production in 2015 led to a third-place finish in the American League MVP voting. With top-quality defense and overall baserunning contributions factored in, it’s hard not to label Cain one of the game’s most productive position players.
Of course, as Passan notes in another tweet, Kansas City wasn’t willing to reach the kind of long-term deal that would have kept Cain around beyond 2017. Given his relatively advanced age, and the signing of Alex Gordon, the six-year pact that Cain reportedly sought probably entailed too much risk. It’s hardly preordained that Cain will be gone after the conclusion of this contract, but — much as in the cases of Desmond and Zimmermann — there’s a sense that the most realistic window for a deal has already closed.
Passan first reported a deal was close (via Twitter) and Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reported that there was an agreement in place (Twitter links).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Marlins Extend Dee Gordon
The Marlins have officially announced the extension of second baseman Dee Gordon, meaning he’ll join the organization’s stable of talented, young players under team control for the foreseeable future. The reigning National League batting champion, a client of the Beverly Hills Sports Council, will receive five guaranteed years in a deal that comes with a sixth-year vesting option, per the announcement.
Gordon will take home a $50MM guarantee for his age 28 through 32 seasons, according to reports. That includes a $1.5MM signing bonus and yearly salaries of $3MM (2016), $7.5MM (2017), $10.5MM (2018), $13MM (2019) and $13.5MM (2020). Also, the sixth-year option contains a $1MM buyout. If it is triggered — by Gordon reaching 600 plate appearances in the prior season or 1,200 total over the preceding two years — then he’d stand to earn $14MM in 2021 to bring the total value of the contract to $63MM. The contract doesn’t contain a no-trade clause, although the Marlins generally don’t include such provisions as a general club policy.
A former fourth-round pick of the Dodgers, Gordon rated as one of the game’s brightest prospects from 2010-11 but didn’t establish himself early on and soon dropped off of those same prospect rankings. After struggling greatly at the Major League level in both 2012 and 2013, Gordon cemented himself as a regular in 2014 at the age of 26, batting .289/.326/.378 and leading the National League in both triples (12) and stolen bases (64).
That breakout was enough to pique the Marlins’ trade interest, and Miami parted with highly touted left-handed pitching prospect Andrew Heaney as well as versatile utility man Enrique Hernandez, right-hander Chris Hatcher and catching prospect Austin Barnes to land Gordon, fellow infielder Miguel Rojas and Dan Haren from Los Angeles in a 2014 Winter Meetings blockbuster.
Gordon’s first season with Miami went better than perhaps anyone could have expected, as he captured the National League batting crown and posted an outstanding .333/.359/.418 batting line with four homers, 58 stolen bases and markedly improved defensive contributions according to metrics such as Defensive Runs Saved (+13) and Ultimate Zone Rating (+6.4). Gordon made his second consecutive All-Star team in 2015 and also earned his first Silver Slugger and Gold Glove Awards in recognition of his brilliant season. Fangraphs rated his overall contributions at 4.6 wins above replacement and Baseball-Reference rated him at 4.9 WAR.
With this extension, the Marlins will buy out Gordon’s three remaining arbitration seasons as well as two free-agent years, with a vesting option that can extend the deal into what would have been his third free-agent year. That, perhaps, served as a compromise between the two sides, as the Marlins had reportedly been interested in a five-year term, whereas Gordon’s camp was said to be eyeing a seven-year deal. If the option is ultimately triggered, this contract will cover Gordon’s age-27 through age-32 seasons, allowing him to once again hit the open market at the age of 33.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had pegged Gordon for a $5.9MM salary in 2016 — one year after he had earned $2.5MM as a Super Two player. Gordon would’ve been eligible for arbitration two more times after this season, so it’s probably reasonable to expect that his remaining three arbitration seasons could have been worth anywhere from $25-27MM. That would suggest a value somewhere in the range of about $12MM or so on each of his two free-agent seasons, with the third coming at a slightly higher price, dependent on Gordon’s own performance. While Gordon would certainly receive a larger annual sum were he on the open market this winter, concessions are always necessary on the player side of the equation in order to receive guarantees of this nature so far in advance.
The Marlins were well-positioned to add another long-term commitment to their ledgers. Giancarlo Stanton‘s behemoth $325MM contract is, of course, the largest obligation on the books, but beyond that, Christian Yelich and the just-signed Wei-Yin Chen possess the only guaranteed contracts extending beyond the 2016 season.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported the signing (Twitter link). Jon Heyman reported important financial details in a series of tweets: 1; 2; 3; 4.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Market For Yoenis Cespedes “Intensifying”
10:57pm: The Tigers are among the teams still at least considering Cespedes, Jon Heyman reports (all Twitter links). While GM Al Avila said during the Winter Meetings that his team was “out” on Cespedes, that was six weeks ago and things could have changed with the outfielder still on the market in mid-January. Indeed, later reports suggested that Detroit was still monitoring Cespedes if his price dropped. Heyman notes that the Tigers may be thinking about adding a big bat since they seriously thought about signing Davis; some front office members even wanted to make the move, though “future luxury-tax concerns” scuttled the signing.
12:36pm: With plenty of interest in and activity on Cespedes, there’s “no chance” he will be forced to take a “very short deal,” Jon Heyman tweets.
10:58am: The market for free agent outfielder Yoenis Cespedes is “intensifying,” according to ESPN.com’s Jim Bowden (Twitter link). It seems possible that a deal could come together within “the next few days,” he adds.
With yesterday’s reported agreement between Chris Davis and the Orioles, it seems plausible to expect greater clarity in Cespedes’s own market. Baltimore had emerged as one of the most widely-reported suitors for the Cuban veteran, but the addition of Davis likely takes them out of the market for further major power bats.
Cespedes is said to be seeking something nearing or even exceeding the overall value that Davis received from the O’s. But it remains unclear as yet where that level of cash will come from. Baltimore was reportedly interested at around $90MM over five years.
While we have only heard about clear interest from a few teams to date, Bowden says that as many as ten organizations are still in “active contact” with Cespedes’s reps. While at least some are surely offering a soft landing rather than pursuing a bidding war, that’s still encouraging at this stage of the winter.
From public reports to date, the Mets and White Sox are apparently not willing to go past three years. The Braves reportedly have interest, too, but it’s hard to imagine that Atlanta would go anywhere near the Davis contract. Other teams that make good hypothetical fits, such as the Tigers and Angels, have not been tied strongly to Cespedes.
In considering the possibilities, though, it’s worth noting that virtually all of the league’s teams could stand to improve by adding Cespedes. While that’s hardly the end of the analysis, there should be ample motivation to explore the possibilities. Young players can be held in the upper minors; trades can be made; and position changes can be implemented. It’s true, too, that there are some trade candidates still out there that effect things as well, but there’s no getting around the fact that Cespedes had a monster season last year, is a great athlete with all-around abilities, and isn’t even all that old.